Aug. 13 (Bloomberg) -- French President Nicolas Sarkozy said Georgia agreed to a modified plan to end fighting in the breakaway region of South Ossetia after the former Soviet republic's military was routed by Russia in a five-day war.

``I have the agreement of all the players,'' Sarkozy told reporters in the Georgian capital, Tbilisi, early today after flying in from Moscow. ``I have found my interlocutors in Moscow and Tbilisi ready to make an effort for peace.''

After Russian President Dmitry Medvedev agreed to the plan yesterday, Sarkozy, who holds the European Union's rotating presidency, met his Georgian counterpart, Mikheil Saakashvili, to discuss the six-point proposal for a cease-fire.

Medvedev ordered a halt to the offensive, which was sparked by Georgia's move to retake South Ossetia. The war, Russia's first major foreign offensive since the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, further strained relations between the U.S., which considers Georgia one of its closest allies in the region, and its former Cold War foe.

The modified version of the plan removed a reference to international talks on the ``future status'' of South Ossetia, Sarkozy said at a news conference with Saakashvili.

Territorial Integrity

``Georgia's territorial integrity must never be put in doubt,'' Saakashvili said. ``Ethnic cleansing'' of villages in a second breakaway region of Abkhazia and ``rampages'' by Russian troops continue even today, he said.

South Ossetia and Abkhazia broke away from Georgian control after wars in the early 1990s and Russian forces have been stationed as peacekeepers in the regions. Most people living in both territories have Russian passports.

``The reunification of Georgia has now been pushed a long way into the future,'' Alexander Rahr, head of the Russia- Eurasia program at Berlin's German Council on Foreign Relations, said in an N24 television interview.

Sarkozy said the agreement, brokered with the help of his foreign minister, Bernard Kouchner, will be presented to the EU's 27 members in Brussels later today. The text will serve as the basis for a legal document to secure the peace, Sarkozy said.

``The aggressor has been punished and has suffered heavy losses,'' Medvedev said yesterday. Russian forces will continue to ``destroy'' any ``pockets of resistance,'' he said, adding that the safety of peacekeeping troops and citizens in the Russian-backed breakaway regions is secure.

Medvedev declared a day of mourning for today, ordering state flags to be flown at half-mast and canceling entertainment programs on radio, television and in theaters. Russia's military said yesterday 15 peacekeepers were killed in the fighting.

Key Ally

The West sees Georgia as a key ally in the region, in part because it has a pipeline that carries Caspian Sea crude oil to Western markets, bypassing Russia. President George W. Bush backs Georgia's bid to join the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, which Russia views as a security threat.

NATO should affirm the potential of Georgia and Ukraine to become alliance members in the face of the Russian incursion, said U.S. government officials who spoke to reporters in Washington yesterday on condition they not be identified.

``Georgia's chances of joining NATO are going to be delayed for many, many years,'' said Rahr.

Georgia filed a case at the International Court of Justice accusing Russia of alleged ethnic cleansing in the breakaway regions between 1993 and this year, the Georgian Foreign Ministry said in an e-mailed statement late yesterday.

Russia is continuing reconnaissance activities and disarming police in the town of Zugdidi, just across the border from Abkhazia, Anatoly Nogovitsyn, the deputy head of Russia's General Staff told reporters in Moscow. The Russian military still controls the Georgian air base of Senaki, 40 kilometers (25 miles) from Abkhazia, he said.

Peace Plan

Medvedev read out the peace plan at a news conference in Moscow yesterday with Sarkozy, saying that Russian and Georgian troops ``would be withdrawn to their positions prior to the start of hostilities.''

Russia pledged to maintain peacekeeping forces in South Ossetia and take additional security measures until international mechanisms are found to regulate the conflict in the area.

The plan also calls for the renunciation of the use of force, an end to all military operations and a commitment to making humanitarian aid freely available in the zone of conflict.

Russia sent tanks, troops and warplanes into Georgia on Aug. 8 in what it said was a response to a Georgian offensive on South Ossetia. Saakashvili called South Ossetia and Abkhazia ``occupied territories.''

Dead, Refugees

More than 2,000 people were killed in the fighting, according to Russian estimates. The United Nations Refugee Agency said almost 100,000 people have fled the conflict.

``The U.S., while a bystander, is also a loser,'' said Cliff Kupchan, of the New-York based Eurasia Group political risk consulting firm. ``The U.S. critically needs Russia on key issues like Iran's nuclear program and Russia will be even less diplomatically accessible after this.''

Medvedev called for a ``partial demilitarization'' on the Georgian side of the border with Abkhazia and South Ossetia.

He insisted that Georgia sign a legally binding non- aggression accord with South Ossetia, a self-proclaimed republic of 70,000 people. Georgia must also withdraw its forces from military bases it used to stage its attack on the disputed region, which is about half the size of Kosovo, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said. Georgian peacekeepers won't be allowed to return to South Ossetia.

Abkhazia has a population of about 200,000 people. Georgia has a population of 4.6 million.

The Russian minister said that Saakashvili should step down. Russia refuses to negotiate with Saakashvili because it has ``no trust'' in him and because he's a ``criminal,'' Lavrov said. ``It will be best if he left.''

To contact the reporters on this story: Helena Bedwell in Tbilisi at hbedwell@bloomberg.net; Paul Abelsky in St. Petersburg at pabelsky@bloomberg.net

Last Updated: August 13, 2008 03:49 EDT